Skip Navigation | ANU Home | Search ANU | Directories

Observing

RSAA Policies on External Users and External Students

Who can apply for time on RSAA telescopes?

Proposals for use of the 2.3m will only be considered if the PI is from the ANU or from another institution that contributes financially or has recently contributed financially and directly to the building and/or operations of the 2.3m telescope and its commissioned instruments. These institutions include those that collaborated on the successful ARC LIEF bid to fund the Blue Arm of the WiFeS spectrograph. All such proposals will be judged on their scientific merit alone. There will be no quotas placed on the amount of time available for qualifying institutions. These policies will remain in place for the present. Currently eligible (non-ANU) institutions are the AAO, UQld, UNSW and USyd. Telescope time is allocated quarterly by a Time Assignment Committee which has two outside (non-ANU) members. The application form (mssso_blank.tex) and associated style file (mssso.sty) for telescope time are available by anonymous ftp from mso.anu.edu.au on /pub/mso_tac, and applications should be submitted electronically following the Procedure for Applying for RSAA Telescope Time.

Specific rules for outside users

All users need a "check out" period on telescopes and instruments. New users are required to spend at least one night at the telescope BEFORE their run with an experienced observer in order to get instruction in the use of the telescope and instrument. Hence, they need to arrive at least one day before their observing run starts. In addition, guidance can generally be provided by technical staff between 1.30-4 pm during the afternoon of the first night of a new user's observing run. For outside students, RSAA insists that 1st year students be accompanied by their supervisor or an acceptable substitute on their observing runs.

Arranging for joint supervision of post-grad students enrolled at other Universities

There is no difficulty in principle about joint supervision, but all such supervision needs to be subject to definite arrangements entered into on a case by case basis. In practice this means that the two (or more) prospective supervisors (home University and ANU) should reach agreement on the content of the thesis, the nature and extent of the collaboration, and the respective role and responsibilities of all supervisors, BEFORE ANY COMMITMENT IS MADE TO THE STUDENT CONCERNED. Ideally, this would mean that each thesis project should be discussed and defined by the collaborating supervisors BEFORE ANY PROSPECTIVE STUDENT IS ENROLLED, although this may not be possible in all cases. What we must avoid, however, is any situation in which a student is enrolled by another university on a promise of access to RSAA facilities and supervision, WITHOUT this having been discussed and agreed in advance on a case by case basis. In other words: (1) if a good idea for a jointly-supervised thesis is fully worked out and then offered to a prospective student, that is ideal; (2) if a good idea for a jointly-supervised thesis develops in respect of an already enrolled student, and suitable arrangements can be agreed, that is acceptable; but (3) if a student is enrolled by another university on the promise of doing a jointly-supervised thesis, without any prior agreement having been reached with RSAA, that is not acceptable, and RSAA will feel themselves under no obligation in such circumstances. In practical terms, there is no substitute for direct supervisor-to-supervisor discussions in formulating thesis projects, although (from the RSAA point of view) the Convener of the RSAA Graduate Program would like to be kept informed of all proposals. The responsibility for identifying a suitable RSAA co-supervisor should, of course, rest chiefly with the proposing external (to RSAA) supervisor.

Student access to RSAA telescope facilities

This is on the same conditions as for everyone else, i.e. students can have access to all facilities, but only through the quarterly time allocation procedures which award time on scientific merit on the basis of detailed written proposals. Obviously this presents something of a conflict in the context of thesis work, where, on the one hand, the award of time is essential if the thesis project is to be completed on time, but, on the other hand, no award of time can be guaranteed under the procedures of time allocation on merit. The way that this "conflict" is overcome is that, before any student commences a thesis project at Stromlo, a draft Thesis Proposal is developed by the student in consultation with the proposed supervisors, and this is circulated for comment to all RSAA staff. An important element of this Draft Proposal is that it must specify, in precise terms, what the observational requirements of the thesis will be. Obviously if such a thesis proposal is favourably received by the RSAA staff at the circulation stage, it will be quite likely to win enough time in the quarterly allocations for the thesis to remain viable. It would be a wise precaution for RSAA to insist that any jointly-supervised thesis project undergo the same procedure, and it is likely that this will be established as one of the conditions for such arrangements.